Quiet Day in Suite 405

[addo]

Time to hook into things. Dead starter, dead aircon, dodgy wiring, rattly dash. I've finished dismantling; time to start cleaning and reassembling.





The original Valeo starter will be replaced by a fully kitted Xantia PMGR type unit (D6RA661) as they're smaller, 15% gruntier, easier to get bits for and lighter.

I've had the compressor lightly serviced (seals, front bearings and run-tested), and the flex hoses are being remade with the original hose ends, resonator and damper chambers. TX valve is non-original and may be changed; evaporator is OK and massively built. I am not sure how much efficiency it loses by being sized for R12 but with most system parts in fine fettle it should cope!

New heater core to replace the original 1990 manufactured unit which finally sprung a leak in 2009 (is this a record?). I have the whole heater box apart and will be regreasing/checking all flap operations after a full clean in detergent, piece by piece.

Once the internal HVAC is sorted I'll be testing all engine bay wiring and tidying a few bodges. Then we refit the dash, and the inside is finished (give or take) - watch the Classifieds for some desperately wanted parts...

Finally, the whole front comes off, clean and detail, reassemble and away we go. Give me just over a fortnight, excluding any odd situations...

[CitroJim]

Good work Adam I see a concours win coming up for you!!!

[spider]

Excellent

The MK2 dash (which you have) is less rattly than the MK1's in most cases so that's one good thing (less pieces = less potential rattles) , the speedo cable can be annoying. From what I remember its fitted originally with a rubber band to hold it in the right place and this breaks off when the speedo and cable come together.

[addo]

Mine's a Ph1.5 (July 1990) so it has the rattly dash.

You could well be right on the OEM rubber band; I removed a tan coloured dead one when replacing dash globes last year.

Heater box all cleaned and sorted; can't reassemble yet as I want to get the evaporator pressure tested tomorrow (too much work in R&R for it to be leaky).

PSA learned a lot between these early 405s and later models; for example setting the wiring tray on top of the HVAC/bracing rather than affixing to the dash underside.

[addo]

OK, the official "How To" for removing a Series 1 405 Dash off an EFI car.

Ensure car is well parked up and chocked before commencing.

1. Underbonnet: Disconnect battery, recover gas from aircon, disconnect freon hoses at TX valve and plug/cap each. Unhook heater hoses at firewall and join temporarily with irrigation poly elbow. Unplug wiper jets atop scuttle trim and remove wiper arms. Remove scuttle trim and air intake shroud. Unbolt wiper linkage and slip towards radiator. Unbolt air intake to HVAC box. In scuttle, remove 10mm firewall nut on driver's side closest to wing, then two firewall nuts near centre (behind wiper motor) and one on the passenger side near ECU location. Identify and disconnect any aftermarket wiring that may hinder removal of dash/heater.

2. Preliminary inside: Push front seats fully back, remove handbrake shroud, under-ashtray oddments tray then locate and remove two self tappers in its "roof". Remove side carpet trims from console after locating forward/upper screws. Remove side air ducts from console. Pull back centre console gently after identifying and removing base fasteners and wiring plugs at firewall end - look for cable ties or hold-downs that may trap this wiring. Lift up console and remove from car.

3. Sides: Remove front door sill trims after locating self tappers, and also A pillar trims. Unbolt wiring earth point on passenger side hinge pillar, and on both sides disconnect all plugs that go into the sill harnesses.

4. Fuse panel: Swing this down and identify/remove the two 10mm bolts holding its cover hinge bracket in place. Remove all plugs from the fuse panel; they are colour coded, then remove fuse panel/cover.

5. Steering column: Unscrew and remove upper/lower shroud pieces. Remove the pinch bolt to column spline clamp, then four 13mm nuts holding column to pedal box/bracket. As column wants to fall, identify and remove all wiring plugs including 10mm bolt holding relay bracket to rear of pedal box. With column unfettered, mark alignment before slipping off the splines and removing complete from vehicle.

6. Fascia/dash: Remove radio by manufacturer release method then unplug; reach behind/down through its opening and disconnect ashtray illumination/lighter plugs. Pull out the push switch blanking plates then use finger pressure from behind to release push switches on passenger side of dash. Mark switches/locations and disconnect - including clock. Carefully unclip the centre cover trim at base of dash display, to expose self tappers on left and right. Remove these screws and also the two 10mm bolts visible through the push switch blanks on the passenger side. On driver's side of the dash, remove similarly the two push switches and blanking plug, also pull firmly to remove the headlight adjuster knob. Identify and remove the single matching 10mm bolt to the passenger side pair. The dash hood will now lift slightly forward and up/off. After removal of the three 10mm bolts (two behind ashtray, one above radio slot) lift off the fascia panel. Lift the small cover off the driver's side. Unscrew to release the headlight adjuster mounting flange now exposed.

HVAC Controller: Remove the four self tappers, and slip unit backwards slightly to disengage locating pins from dash. Now bring forwards and carefully unplug wiring, then mark and remove cables. Identify and remove the black tubular strut to tunnel brace at dash centre base (8mm head), also the upper central angle bracket securing dash to HVAC box. At the same time remove the #3 Phillips self tappers holding dash centre sides to the HVAC box.

Cluster: Remove self tappers, unplug upper connectors. Lift up and ease forwards until a hand can be slipped gently in to release the speedo cable. Bring the dash further forwards until the remaining wiring plugs to dash rear may be removed. Remove cluster from car.

Demister grille: Remove three screws and carefully ease grill up/out. Place in a safe location - fragile.

Dash carcass: As dash has cable tray screwed to its underside, double check all body wiring is disconnected from dash harness- including that to engine compartment. Remove 10mm carcass bolts either side in the lower door hinge mount vicinity, and dash should now be physically free. Pull evenly backwards about 25mm to loosen taper of firewall locating bolts. Care should be taken to perform removal operations evenly from left to right or there is risk of something catching/breaking. Lift up dash slightly more as it is drawn further back, to clear gearknob and handbrake. Remove from car.

HVAC box: Identify the compression clamp at base rear of box, mounting to slotted bracket off firewall. Loosen clamp screw then draw box forwards, before lifting up and out.

RITROR note: To replace the receiver/drier it may be beneficial to remove front bumper/grille and slip the front plastic frame loose 50mm or so - the radiator can then be eased rearwards and access to the drier clamp bolts and unions is greatly improved.

[spider]

Yes its quite a job, its before they made them 'easier' to come apart I think.

[addo]

Starter rebuilt and tested; oddly the aftermarket brushes from WoodAuto needed shortening by about 3/32" - they locked it up originally, causing much head-scratching!

Heater core in HVAC box, evaporator tested in sink of water at 100PSI; held pressure fine with no bubbles. I flushed it twice with brake cleaner afterwards to eliminate traces of R12 oil. Engine bay cleaning continues; much of the corrugated tubing will need renewal as it's cracked, chafed or abraded. So far have used about 5 litres of brake cleaner chasing little nooks and crannies on the driveline...

Looking forward to getting the dash back in.

[addo]

Dropped the ball on this one a little.

HVAC box reinstalled after heaps of plastic welding repairs and a rebuild to the climate ECU.

Radiator support panel stripped out, and the front cleaned. No rust found at all!



I'll be putting the front together over next few days - condenser was so ratty in appearance, I dropped it off for pressure testing. Worst bit? Old age is rushing up on me; I tweaked my back nicely trying to use three hands when lifting off the radiator support and still holding the (attached) radiator...

[spider]

Looks good.

They are pretty rust resistant though this 'generation' , usual fail spot seems to be the rear end of the inner sill if I remember correctly.

[addo]

I'll have a perve around that area. The only real corrosion I've observed is post-repair; neaside beaver seam above bumper and offside sail panel to forward edge boot opening trimmer. Very small blisters, anyhow. There is some surface deterioration under the master-vac but I'm confident it's not through.